Chapter 17
Zane
Hope steps back, pulling out of my hands. She bumps into the bookcase behind her. “You don’t mean that.”
“I do.”
“But you don’t know me.”
That’s…true. I take a deep breath and push to my feet. Then it’s my turn to pace away from her, because the other option is pressing her up against that bookcase and taking her lush mouth with mine.
When I’m halfway across the room, I turn and look back at her. “When I was twelve years old, I watched my father punch my mother for the last time. Because the next thing that happened was Ridge slamming into him, shoving him down the stairs. He broke his neck in the fall. Ridge broke his arm. There was a police investigation, and for months, we didn’t know if he would go to jail for saving Luna’s life. When he was finally cleared, Mom had spent all of her money on therapy and lawyers. We got in the car and left Edmonton in the rearview mirror.”
“Zane…”
“Never told anyone else that. Mercy knows, because Ridge told her, and she had a front row seat when we showed up all broken and sad.Nobodyelse knows. So I might not know you well, yet, but you shared some things with me that I bet you haven’t told anyone else. And now I’ve done thesame.” I flex my hands at my sides. “That summer, I felt like a man unable to take care of his family for the first time. For the last time, too. Because I quickly learned, Hope. I know what it means to take care of people, I can promise you that.”
“You can’t want?—”
“I can. I do. I took one look at you and wanted you to be my family with a fierceness that scared me. Tried to shove that away, because it reminded me too much of my own father, as a matter of fact. You know what I remember the most about him? How much he wanted my mother. He was all over her, all the time. Loved on her so much it was embarrassing. Until she made him mad.”
Hope’s eyes flare with recognition.
I nod sadly. “Yeah, you know about that, don’t you? I never want to be that kind of man, Hope. But I’ve had a few short days and a couple very long nights to get my head on straight when it comes to you, and what I can offer you. I promise you that as much as I want you, I want to give you more.”
Her hands flutter in front of her. “But I’m…”
I take a step closer. “Yes.”
“Zane.”
“Let me in, Hope.” Another step. “Let me know you.”
She chokes out a disbelieving sob. “You can’t want his baby.”
“Doesn’t need to be his baby. You say the word, and that innocent child is mine, I promise you.”
She stares at me. Doesn’t matter if I’m looming over her or looking up at her, this is all overwhelming tonight. And she’s got a precious reason to need her sleep.
Giving her all the time in the world to step away, I reach up and gently cup her face in myhand. “You don’t need to decide tonight. You should get some rest.”
But she doesn't move.
Neither do I.
Slowly, the space between us gathers a charge, like the air before an epic thunderstorm. I'm painfully, beautifully aware of every little detail. The warmth of her cheek against my fingertips. The way her breathing steadies as she stares at me. The glitter of her gaze and how long it stays glued to my face, waiting for me to flinch.
Never gonna happen.
When I see her trust buoy up, and her shoulders soften, I let my hungry eyes drift lazily to her mouth. Let her see that it’s not just that I want to protect her little family, but I crave her as a woman, too.
It scares her, though. Of course it does.
She shakes her head.
“I don’t think I can be what you want,” she whispers.
A shudder slams through me, because she already is. Broken, scared, soft and small, she’s already perfect despite the world trying to pummel her from every angle. “You let me worry about that.”
